Chase ends in wreck

On Saturday Dec. 26, 2015 around 3:36 a.m., during his patrol in the Livingston Springs area, Patrolman Smith observed Anthony Keith, 28, of Tallahassee, at a stop sign.

According to a report from the Madison City Police Department, Keith’s vehicle was not moving from its place at the stop sign, his brake lights were not lit and there seemed to be no attempt to move his vehicle.

Patrolman Smith drew up behind Keith’s stopped vehicle, a 2002 Chevy Silverado and waited for roughly two minutes.After waiting for two minutes, the vehicle still hadn’t moved from its place at the stop sign and so Patrolman Smith ran the Florida tag number through dispatch.

Going around the apparently parked vehicle, Ptl. Smith knocked on the half-rolled down window to rouse Keith from where he was sleeping behind the wheel.

According the Ptl. Smith’s report, Keith seemed disoriented and attempted to grab the column shifter as if he thought he needed to leave.

Keith was ordered to remove his hand from the column shifter and roll his window down all the way.

That alone proved to be a difficulty for Keith, as he continued to roll down the passenger window on the driver side with no seeming intent to roll the driver’s window down completely.

Ptl. Smith requested to see Keith’s driver’s license and after an episode of Keith attempting to hand over his Military ID, the driver’s license and registration was eventually passed over to Ptl. Smith.

When asked why there was a tag on his vehicle that was registered to an expired homemade trailer, Keith stated that he didn’t know.

Keith was also questioned about whether or not he had been drinking and he admitted to having consumed alcohol five hours ago, but nothing since then.

Keith was instructed to sit tight while Ptl. Smith ran his driver’s license. After leaving the side of Keith’s vehicle, Ptl. Smith radioed in for Cpl. J. Smith of the Madison City Police Department to come and provide backup.

The driver’s license came back as suspended indefinitely and the registration was connected to a Chevy suburban with a decal that expired in January of 2015.

Confronting Keith, Ptl. Smith asked him to step out of his vehicle.

Keith resisted by quickly fleeing from the traffic stop.

Traveling westbound, Keith ran the stop sign at the intersection of Meeting St. and Livingston St., turned left onto Meeting St. and then turned right onto St. Haynes St.

The whole time, Keith failed to stay within a single lane and continued accelerating.

Once on Haynes St., Keith went through the curve, barely missed a telephone pole and went by the helicopter pad, going through a chain link fence and continuing through a private front yard of a residence’s home. Keith continued and his vehicle hit the mailbox of the resident owner’s and then crossed over to Alligator Tr.

Keith didn’t make it much farther than that, as his vehicle hit an embankment and overturned; coming to rest on the driver’s side up against a telephone pole on the southern direction of Alligator Tr.

Ptl. Smith drove around the parking lot of Madison County Memorial Hospital and then turned around onto Crane Ave. until he could turn right back onto Alligator Tr.

Keith was still in his overturned vehicle as Ptl. Smith returned and parked in front of the Chevy Silverado.

Keith attempted to exit his wrecked vehicle through the passenger side window, but as the window was still rolled up, progress wasn’t going so well on his continued flee.

Ptl. Smith positioned himself, with his weapon drawn, at the rear of the overturned vehicle as Keith changed escape tactics, instead attempting to exit his vehicle through the broken window at the back.

Ptl. Smith ordered Keith to exit his vehicle, at which point, Keith began ignoring the commands directed towards him.

The command was requested two more times before Cpl. Smith arrived on scene, his weapon also drawn.

The order to exit the vehicle was reiterated, but Keith continued to ignore the officers.

Ptl. Smith holstered his weapon and instead drew out his X-26 taser.

Cpl. Smith resumed his order for Keith to exit the vehicle and yet again it was ignored until Keith finally declared that he was “trying to get [his] balance.”

At that point, Cpl. Smith drew his own X-26 Taser and ordered Keith to show his hands; on the first time of the order being given, Keith ignored it, but when Cpl. Smith repeated it, Keith obliged and gave a show of his hands.

Keith was then extracted from the vehicle and placed on the ground where he was cuffed by Cpl. Smith and Ptl. Smith along with the aid of Sgt. Stout, Dept. Pike and Dept. Morris of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.

Madison Fire and Madison EMS were requested to come to the scene due to the vehicle crash.EMS arrived to check Keith’s injuries; a cut on his right arm, which was dressed before Keith refused any further treatment.

Dept. Morris transferred Keith, without any further incident, to the Madison County Jail and then turned him over into the custody of Corrections.

Keith was charged with DUI crash with property damage, attaching tag not assigned, reckless driving, driving with license suspended knowingly, fleeing / attempting to elude, out of county warrant and resisting an officer without violence.

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